Use Magic Device

[Peter Gibbons]

Can UMD be used to blindly activate a wand, in order to find out what spell it holds?

I don't see why not. That's what "blindly" implies to me.

 

[Caliban]

The related question is - can you 'blindly' activate a wand without UMD?

Only in the sense of blindly guessing the command word and hoping the spell is on your class list.

"It's a wand with a faint aura of Illusion [Glamer]. I'll try to activate Invisibility. No? Okay, I'll pass it to the cleric - you try Silence!"

It costs a charge, but saves the Identify spell...

-Hyp.

If the wand did not activate, why would a charge be expended?

 

[frankthedm]

If the wand did not activate, why would a charge be expended?

I do think the poster was refering to expending a charge when the spell goes off.

 

[Hypersmurf]

Only in the sense of blindly guessing the command word and hoping the spell is on your class list.

Blindly guessing the spell and hoping it's on your class list. Anyone knows how to activate a wand of a spell on their list - the command word isn't unique or secret.

No gestures or spell finishing is needed, just a special knowledge of spellcasting that an appropriate character would know, and a single word that must be spoken. Anyone with a spell on his or her spell list knows how to use a spell trigger item that stores that spell. (This is the case even for a character who can’t actually cast spells, such as a 3rd-level paladin.) The user must still determine what spell is stored in the item before she can activate it.

Cure Light Wounds is on my spell list; I know how to use a Wand of Cure Light Wounds.

You hand me a wand, and say "It's CLW", and I know how to use it. You don't need to say "It's CLW, and the command word is 'Allbetternow'".

Compare command word activation, which describes how command words might be written, hidden, hinted at, etc, with spell trigger activation, which says 'You know how to use it if it's on your list'.

If the wand did not activate, why would a charge be expended?

It costs a charge when you eventually get it right, and the wand does activate.

-Hyp.

 

[Peter Gibbons]

Blindly guessing the spell and hoping it's on your class list. Anyone knows how to activate a wand of a spell on their list - the command word isn't unique or secret.

No gestures or spell finishing is needed, just a special knowledge of spellcasting that an appropriate character would know, and a single word that must be spoken. Anyone with a spell on his or her spell list knows how to use a spell trigger item that stores that spell. (This is the case even for a character who can’t actually cast spells, such as a 3rd-level paladin.) The user must still determine what spell is stored in the item before she can activate it.

No gestures or spell finishing is needed, just two things: (1) a special knowledge of spellcasting, and (2) a command word.

Anyone with a spell on his or her spell list knows #1.

Cure Light Wounds is on my spell list; I know how to use a Wand of Cure Light Wounds.

That's right. But you don't necessarily know the "single word that must be spoken."

You hand me a wand, and say "It's CLW", and I know how to use it. You don't need to say "It's CLW, and the command word is 'Allbetternow'".

I think you do.

 

[Pielorinho]

As for requirements of spell, I'd suggest that on a blind activation it's up to the DM for maximum hijinks. As a rough rule of thumb, I'd set all ranges at maximum, targets as anyone within range that seems plausible to the DM (e.g., if the player says, "I point the wand at John's pet hamster and wave it around," then the hamster gets targeted), effects of spells iwth multiple effects are the first one on the list (or the first one that could work), and so forth.

Remember, though: maximum hijinks. Not maximum carnage, necessarily.

Daniel

 

[Hypersmurf]

That's right. But you don't necessarily know the "single word that must be spoken."

If the spell trigger description or the wand description talked about how the word might be written, carved, engraved, built, or hinted at somewhere on the item, I'd agree with you.

If the command word description didn't talk about how the word might be written, carved, engraved, built, or hinted at somewhere on the item, I'd concede the possibility.

But given that command word goes to great lengths to show that the word is not known, and that spell triggers says anyone who knows the spell knows how to activate the item, I can only read that as 'The single word is not secret'.

If you know it's a wand of CLW, and CLW is on your list, you know the word to activate the wand.

-Hyp.

 

[Caliban]

Blindly guessing the spell and hoping it's on your class list. Anyone knows how to activate a wand of a spell on their list - the command word isn't unique or secret.

I think that is an incorrect assumption on your part. All wands with the same spell automatically having the same command word is not a requirement of the rules. The command word would be set by the creator of the item.

 

[Hypersmurf]

The command word would be set by the creator of the item.

But then anyone with the spell on their list won't know how to activate it.

"Sure - I know how to activate this. I just say the word."
"What word?"
"Er... I don't know."
"So do you know how to activate it, or not?"
"... not."

-Hyp.

 

[Peter Gibbons]

But then anyone with the spell on their list won't know how to activate it.

Except for the explicit statement that they do.

I know how to boot up a computer. That doesn't mean I have the password.